This invention relates generally to personal electronic products, and more specifically to the arrangement of an electronic circuit and power supply in personal electronic products.
When printed circuit boards are incorporated into a personal electronic product such as an electronic camera, cellular telephone, CD or tape player, or other electronic product for that matter, there is a requirement to provide power connections to the circuit boards from a battery or similar source of power. Also, any additional boards existing within the product must also be wired with power and ground connections to allow for the flow of electrical power. Similarly, interconnections in the form of wires, ribbon cables and the like are also required to route the necessary operating signals between these circuit boards, for the purpose of providing proper circuit operation. This typical method of construction utilizes a large number of discrete wires which are costly, consume space, and are subject to be broken through movement if the personal electronic apparatus is disassembled for service, upgrade or inspection. There is a need therefore for an architecture that avoids these problems. It would also be desirable to provide a personal electronic product that is readily pocketable, and therefore as thin as possible.
The above noted problems are solved according to the present invention by providing a personal electronic apparatus which includes a case and a flat battery located in the case and having power and ground electrodes on one side of the battery, and a plurality of interconnection electrodes extending from one side of the battery to the other. A first circuit board is arranged in the case on one side of the battery and has a first set of power supply contacts for contacting the power and ground electrodes on the one side of the battery, and one or more first signal contacts for contacting one or more of the interconnection electrodes. A second circuit board is located in the case on the other side of the battery and has one or more second signal contacts for contacting one or more of the interconnections.
According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the apparatus is an electronic camera wherein all wiring interconnects including power, ground and electrical signals between two circuit boards, one being a sensor board and the second being a display board are provided through the contacts on the flat battery.
The present invention has the advantage of providing a flat configuration for a thin personal electronic apparatus which possesses means for providing all the necessary power, ground and signal connections between circuit boards and battery for the personal electronic apparatus without the need for hard wired connections.
Still another advantage of the present invention is that it provides a method of construction which utilizes a flat battery for a thin digital personal electronic apparatus which substantially reduces the assembly costs of said thin digital personal electronic apparatus.
A still further advantage of the present invention is that it provides greatly enhanced operational reliability and ease of upgrade and repair.